News & Blog

2018 should be a huge year for redistricting cases.

Last fall, the U.S. Supreme Court held oral argument on the Wisconsin partisan gerrymandering case of Gill v. Whitford. Then, in early December, the Supreme Court agreed to hear Benisek v. Lamone, a partisan gerrymandering challenge to the Maryland redistricting plan for its Congressional districts. Why the Supreme Court agreed to hear the Maryland case remains unclear.  However, the Wisconsin plans being challenged benefit the Republicans while the Maryland plan favors Democrats.  Thus, maybe the Court wants to limit the backseat drivers claiming partisanship by issuing decisions that impact both the GOP and the Democrats.

Also, litigation continues in several states where challenges have been made based on partisan gerrymandering and racial gerrymandering challenges.  Presumably, the partisanship cases will have clarification once the Supreme Court rules.

For a good summary of the pending redistricting litigation, Louis Jacobsen wrote an article titled, “Redistricting Cases Could Redefine State and U.S. Politics in 2018”.  Read the article here.

Stay tuned for an impactful year in redistricting matters.